Unexpected Returns
by speaker4thesilent
Summary: A what if fic. AU. Begins at the end of Seed before Destiny. Better summary inside. LK AC and some others, but i don't want to spoil it all! Abandoned. I'll pull it eventually.
1. Chapter 1

This is a what if fic. What if Nicol didn't die? What if he was knocked out when he ejected from the Blitz Gundam? What if he was a little brain damaged and was sent to an orphanage (as he is still a minor) because everyone thinks he's a native of Scandinavia that was caught in a MS battle? What if the Scandinavian Kingdom built several Mobile Suits and a new battleship in secret like ZAFT and the Alliance did? A weird idea based on a very strange dream I had after consuming entirely too much, very good Scotch. I mean very good Scotch. So here it is! Maybe someone will read it. And review! Reviews are very good! Even better than Scotch!

Chapter I

Alone

The search and rescue operation had been going on since shortly after the last shot had been fired. From the destroyed lunar base to the wreckage of GENESIS there were very few survivors. The vast majority of these people had been destroyed by the powerful gamma ray laser that ZAFT had employed as it's last resort. Elsewhere they had better luck. The majority of the MS's and MA's that had done battle with what was being called the Three Ship Alliance were mostly intact many missing only their weapons or propulsion systems. Almost all of them were recoverable. Elsewhere things were somewhat grimmer. Most of the rest of the fighters hadn't been looking out for their opponent's lives, but occasionally a pilot would manage to eject before his ship blew, or a suit would only be missing its arms or head.

In one isolated corner of the battlefield, a pilot received a call from a civilian distress beacon. Double checking to make sure of the coordinates he came in slowly on his thrusters before finding her. He reached out and, as gently as a Mobile Suit can, picked her up in his left hand. It was amazing that she had survived. There was no way a standard civilian, or even most military suits could have taken so much damage and retained any life support abilities whatsoever. This one had obviously been expensive. Though over half the unit's telltales glowed the amber of damage, but only three of them were the red of total failure. If he could get her back to one of the ship's infirmaries there was a damn good chance she'd pull through. Only one thing bothered him, what had a civilian been doing that close to the battlefield?

XXXXX

The medics onboard the _Icarus _had labored for almost seven hours putting this girl back together. A ruptured spleen, abraded kidneys, three herniated discs, an diaphragmatic hernia, seven major bones broken with at least a dozen more minor breaks, and a severe subdural hematoma. She was damned lucky to be alive.

"So," one of the docs began, "have they figured out who she is or where she's from yet?" The military attaché outside the door shakes his head in negation.

"There were several civilian ships near the destruction, and a total of four are missing and presumed lost, but three of the four belonged to the Scandinavian Kingdom. She'll probably be sent there unit someone claims her."

The doctor nodded in understanding, "All right, but don't move her just yet. Her condition is stable, but it's still very serious. We don't know how much damage the bleeding in her brain will cause, and I do not want her moved," he orders his staff before starting in on the next casualty. _Poor thing! She can't be more than fifteen or sixteen years old. She's lost her entire family, and she may yet lose her own life despite everything modern medicine can do for her._

XXXXX

(Two months later)

The doctor walked down the halls of the medical ward at Central Research Hospital in Stockholm in the Scandinavian Kingdom for the fifth time that day, making his rounds. The next room on his schedule was room 517. He really hated that one. It housed Jane Doe 3581. She had been in a coma ever since she was found after the battle of Jachin Due. In that time no one had ever visited her, or even shown interest in her. And now she was dying. He walks into the room yet again and the EEG shows what he expects. "Anything new?" he asks the other neurologist.

"No, cell death is proceeding at the same rate," the other replies. "Nothing we've done can stop it, and there's no observable reason for it, but sections of her brain are just withering away to nothing."

The first doctor nods, and then frowns. "Is it possible that she's a newtype?" he asks after a moment.

The second blinks in confusion. "Why do you think that? In any case, what meaning could it have anyway?"

"It's just that . . . we still don't know what makes newtypes tic! She could have some nutritional requirement that we can't even assess much less fulfill! We could be killing her out of ignorance," the first says, his irritation breaking the surface.

"Even if she is, how are we going to help her?" the first asks, accepting the other's interpretation, if only provisionally.

"I've got a friend in R and D in ORB, maybe there's something they can do to help."

XXXXX

"It's possible, but the treatment is experimental. It could just as easily kill her as make her better," a man in a dark blue suit says to the doctor.

The doctor considers this, but only for a moment, "She's dead already. This is her only chance. We don't know who her parents are. They're probably dead up in space. They were caught in a war that they had no part of. We owe it to her to do whatever we can."

The ORB scientist looks at him and nods. "I understand, and I agree. The drug isn't really ready for a human trial yet, but I think I can convince my supervisors, and if I can't then I know that I can convince Lady Cagalli," he says with certainty before getting down to details. "Alright, we engineered the retrovirus to work like the original fetal development process. That is, after all, the only way to regenerate neurons. The concern is, however, that the regenerating neurons will overload the brain's capacity. If that happens she'll die. If it doesn't, well we really don't know what will happen, but she should recover. Of course her memory will be more or less useless, because it'll have more holes in it than a wheel of swiss cheese. Now we'll need to give her a series of injections . . ."

XXXXX

_PainpainpainpainPAIN! OhGodithurts! Whydoesithurt? Whydoesithurt? _Her eyes opened and then closed again, the light was too much for eyes that had been unseeing for months. Dimly she can hear . . . something_. People talking?_ But what language was it in? _Not English . . . Swedish? Do I know Swedish? Wait, who am I? Where am I? _She tries to sit up, but she can't. This immediately causes more panic. Luckily one of the Doctors hovering over her leans down and speaks to her.

"We've got you on a drug to paralyze you, don't worry, it will wear off soon, but you've been through a lot you need to rest while your body copes with what's happened. We're going to give you a tranquilizer to help you sleep. Do you understand?"

She nods in affirmation, "Pain," she manages to get out through her dry throat and clenched teeth.

The doctor nods, "Alright," he turns to his assistants. "Forget the tranq'. Get me two milligrams of Dilaudid. That'll put her out like a light."

She stays awake long enough to feel the prick of the needle, apparently magnified a couple hundred fold. She was never sure after if it was the pain or the painkiller that knocked her out.

XXXXX

So wadda ya think? Interested? So review! And stuff . . . I'm gonna go drink more Scotch. I'll try to update something soon. I'm working on exactly five fics now! I am so nuts!

Dilaudid: A **very **powerful painkiller. Like the most powerful we have.

Diaphragmatic hernia: The intestines are living upstairs with the lungs. Nuff said.

Subdural hematoma: bleeding in the brain. Not good. Nuff said.


	2. MS MA Battleship Tech

Here's a partial list of the Mobile Suits and Ships involved in the story this will be updated as needed.

Also I am in need of ideas for at least five more original Gundams! If anyone has favorite characteristics they want to see on a MS/MA/Battleship send me a message!

Legacy Gundam

Manufacturer: Fjærinnlemmet

Unit Designation: SKAF-SK01

Unit Type: Experimental Close Assault Mobile Suit

Height: 17.51 meters

Weight: 75.12 metric tons

Power plant: Ultra compact experimental nuclear fusion reactor

Special Equipment: Trans Phase Armor, G.H.O.S.T. system, Lightwave Barrier, Infinity system

Armament: 2x "Bredsverd" anti-shipping sword (combinable), 2x "Rustningsskjærer"

beam saber (combinable), 2x "Returnerende" Beam Boomerang, 8x modified DRAGOON system.

Appearance and Characteristics: Legacy is both smaller and more agile than most Gundams. Its main color is white with black and

green trim and, in appearance is very similar to the base design of Impulse. However, Legacy carries its anti-shipping swords in a

special baldric behind it on its waist. The beam sabers are carried on the suit's hips, and the beam boomerangs are carried on the

shoulders. The DRAGOON system is camouflaged as decorative spikes on Legacy's legs. The head has the traditional Gundam

"horns" and the eyes are glowing bronze.

Tempest Gundam

Manufacturer: Fjærinnlemmet

Unit Designation: SKAF-SK02

Unit Type: Experimental Ranged Assault Mobile Suit

Height: 18.06 Meters

Weight: 95.71 metric tons

Power plant: Ultra compact experimental nuclear fusion reactor

Special Equipment: Trans Phase Armor, Lightwave barrier, Infinity system

Armament: 2x "Skinnegevær" railgun, 2x "Stråler Gevær" beam rifle, 8x beam emitters (in shoulder mounted shielding/weapon pods.

Four in each pod), 2x "Gjennomborer" plasma beam cannon, 2x "Rustningsskjærer" beam saber (combinable).

Appearance and Characteristics: Obviously based on the Freedom Gundam. The body and head are exactly the same as the Freedom,

the only change being that the Tempest has shoulder mounted weapon/shield pods similar to those of the ZAFT MS Abyss. Tempest

can use only the weapons or the lightwave barriers in the pods at any one time.

Arbiter Gundam

Manufacturer: Fjærinnlemmet

Unit Designation: SKAF-SK03

Unit Type: Experimental All Purpose Transformable Mobile Suit

Height: 18.79 meters

Weight: 91.57 metric tons

Power plant: Ultra compact experimental nuclear fusion reactor

Special Equipment: Trans Phase Armor, RPT (Rapid Polymorphic Transformation) Software, Infinity system

Armament: 1x "Rustningsskjærer" beam saber, 1x "Stråler Gevær" beam rifle, 1x "Griper Klo" rocket anchor, 2x "Skinnegevær"

railgun, 2x missile launcher (seven missile magazine for each).

Appearance and Characteristics: The Arbiter Gundam is possibly the most powerful suit yet built, mostly because of its diversity. In its

Mobile Suit form it looks strikingly like the Blitz Gundam, including the rocket anchor on the left arm, though not the assemblage on the

right. The railguns are mounted on the back and project up over the shoulders, while the missiles launchers are mounted at the shoulders

with the magazines running the length of the torso.

In Mobile Armor mode, Arbiter looks like an oversized Sky Grasper. The railguns are mounted parallel to the cockpit with up to a 35

degree traversing capability. The suit's beam rifle is mounted facing backwards, so anything trying to sneak up behind Arbiter will

receive an unpleasant surprise, as will anything that tries to dodge by falling below, as the suit's beam saber faces downward. Missiles

fire upward from the top of the 'Grasper'. However, the rocket anchor is unavailable in this mode.

In land mode, the suit looks remarkably like a BuCUE, complete with the back mounted railguns. Anchor mounted on chest, and beam

sabers on each shoulder, second "beam saber" is actually the beam rifle with a focusing lens attached to refine the rifle's emissions into a

blade. Missile launchers launch vertically from the back.

In submersible mode, Arbiter has no missile capability. Railguns are mounted facing forward on the suits flanks and the rocket anchor is

mounted on the stern for firing rearward and for making very quick turns. The beam saber and beam rifle are in the same configuration

used by the land version of the suit, but power is boosted to match the attenuation factor of the water(same for all SKAF Mobile Suits).

Scandinavian Kingdom Arial Battleship Gustavus aka Dead Reckoning

Length: 350 meters

Wingspan: 265 meters

Propulsion: thermonuclear pulse thruster x 6, small thermonuclear pulse thruster x 8

Armor: Experimental Ablative/Reactive Composite Armor, unknown thickness.

Power plant: 3x Nuclear fission reactors

Special Equipment: Lightwave Barrier, G.H.O.S.T. system, A.I. unit Gustav

Armament: "Lohengrin" positron blaster cannon x 2 "Gottfried Mk.71" 225cm dual high-energy beam cannon x 2 "Valiant Mk.8"

110cm linear cannon x 2 "Igelstellung" 75mm automatic multi-barrel CIWS x 16, "Wombat"/"Corinthos" /"Sledgehammer" missile

launcher x 24, "Helldart" SAM launcher x16

Mobile Suit/Mobile Armor Capacity: 8

Linear Catapults: 2

Appearance: Almost exactly the same as the Archangel class. This is mostly because it was built based on stolen plans of the Archangel.

However, the bridge tower is a decoy, the actual bridge being secreted deep in the hull for safety reasons. Also the armor, power plant,

and computer support have all been upgraded substantially. To use the Lightwave in point defense mode requires the dedicated output

of one reactor, to use it in full 360 degree mode requires the full output of all three. The G.H.O.S.T. system requires the full output of

one reactor for full function and half output for either Electronic Warfare mode or Stealth Mode. All weapons and other vital functions

require the output of 1.378 reactors.

G.H.O.S.T. System stands for:

**G**eneration:

**H**igh Energy

**O**mnidirectional

**S**tealth and

**T**ransmission

System.

It uses sophisticated magnetic and photon technology to render whatever mounts it invisible to heat sensors and visual receptors in

stealth mode. This, however, comes at a price, as no beam weapons are usable when it is activated. Any use of such weapons would

catastrophically overload the projection system causing an exponential feedback loop which will destroy the system and whatever

mounts it. In EW mode it can generate false heat and visual signatures to confuse incoming missiles and defeat most automatic and

manual targeting systems.

Infinity System:

This system is the most tightly held secret of the Scandinavian Kingdom. They have not shared it even with Lady Cagalli of ORB or the

Clyne faction. An application of the Scandinavian Kingdom's advanced AI technology called MMI or Mind/Machine Interface, the

Infinity system is the buffer that allows direct neural control over mobile suits. However, the process places incredible strain on the mind

of the pilot. As a true safety net has yet to be developed, overuse of the system can cause a pilot's mind to simply break. These

catastrophic failures are preceded by hallucinations as much as several minutes previous. Also naturals and coordinators are unable to

use the system long enough for it to be useful in battle. Only newtypes can use the system for more than a few seconds at a time, though

even they are mostly limited to five or six minutes.

This will be expanded as needed while the story develops.


	3. New Beginnings

I don't own Gundam Seed or Seed Destiny or any of the characters therein. They probably belong to some guy over in Japan. I own only my original ideas and the designs for my original MS's and Ships.

Any resemblance to any other story/fic/whatever is purely coincidental. No disrespect is intended, I swear. Also the Action/Adventure part of the fic will be upcoming. . . eventually. Three more chapters tops. Unless my muse insists otherwise.

Oh and the orphanage thing got scrapped. To quote Colonel Jack O'Neill: "You know how I feel about clichés." The orphanage idea was waaaayyy too cliché.

Chapter II

New Beginnings

She was back at the hospital again. This time for her . . . had it really been a month since she woke up? She shook her head. Somehow, it didn't seem nearly that long. She'd been so busy! When she woke up she hadn't remembered anything about her life. She had lots of general knowledge, but no specific memories. She spoke excellent English and Japanese, but she didn't remember any of the Kingdoms' primary languages. She'd had to relearn them before she could start school. Luckily it hadn't taken very long for her to remember them. Trying to get back into a life she couldn't recall was difficult, and the classes she was taking were from a very wide array of disciplines. Her foster parents had been nervous when she decided to take Calculus, A.P. History, and A.P. Government along with all of her other requirements, but she wasn't finding them very difficult. She'd even had time to continue her study of other languages. _Oh well gotta go in and let them poke and prod me for a bit, maybe examine the scars, _she thinks, reaching up and running her fingers over first her right scar and then the left one in a gesture that had become a nervous habit after several weeks. The first scar began just below the right eye and continued on a slightly downward curve to the point of her right jaw, the other began at her left temple and proceeded up and across to the center of her forehead right at the hairline,_ After that, they admit that there's nothing wrong with me and I can get back to learning Mandarin._

XXXXX

"I cannot believe how quickly she's acclimated," her foster mother admitted to the neurologist after her new daughter left the office. "I wouldn't know what to do if something like that happened to me, but Red, that's what everyone calls her, she just shrugs it off and gets down to work!" She says, pride obvious in her voice alongside . . . trepidation?

"I sense a 'But . . . ' coming soon," the doctor says to the girl, Red's, foster mom.

"She's got so much ability! If I didn't know better, I'd swear that she was a coordinator! I mean one day last week she was bored, so on one of her trips through the living room, she sees my father's old Stradivarius violin. She stares at it for a while and then goes to the computer, gets online, and looks up several instructional videos. Then an hour and a half later I come back from the store and she's playing that violin like a performer in a symphony! I just feel so inadequate! What can I hope to teach her?"

The doctor, understanding her feelings of inadequacy tries to offer her some support, after all, the Skjornig's were good people. "Right now the most important thing you can do is give her a family. Be there for her. She doesn't remember her old family, so you and your husband are all she has. Just give her your support with whatever she decides to do."

She smiles a bit blearily, "Thanks Doctor Garner, I'm glad to have that off of my chest,"

"No problem Marie," the doc says with a smile. "My only other suggestion is to go buy a good dictionary. Red uses some really obscure polysyllabic words,"

XXXXX

"I don't even like _asking_ her! I mean, just look at what happened to her at Jachin! Can we, in good conscious, even try?" one of the officers asks the other two military men in his office.

"It's damn distasteful, I agree, but we're officers of the Royal Army. The Kingdom needs her, and occasionally we are forced to do some damn distasteful things to serve our country," the second, a tall, bald man with a gray beard says.

The first speaker is still unconvinced, but before he can begin to argue again the room's third occupant speaks up. "Come on Sven! She's probably the strongest newtype in existence, and she's certainly the best we have, memory or not. We need her abilities to help with the science! Its not like we're going to shove her into a cockpit and throw her into the fighting!"

The first man, Sven, is silent for a long time. So long that the others are almost to the point of starting up again when he finally opens his mouth. "Very well make it so, but no coercion! If she says 'no' then that's it, and you make do with the two coordinator newtypes." The other two military men glance at each other, and then turn to their superior and salute before leaving the office to start the process.

XXXXX

(near the end of the school year)

"Come on, Red! It's just a little help with homework!" one of her friends, Aymee, a fairly short blond with blue eyes pleads.

"Yeah!" the other, a brunette named Kelli even taller than her foster-dad Ivan, interjects, "and Mr. Sukoyev even said we could work together!"

"Did you also see the look he shot me when he said it?" she jumped in before the pleading could continue.

"What look? Aymee and Kelli asked simultaneously.

Red sighs in exasperation, "The if-you-give-your-friends-any-unfair-help-I-will-hunt-you-down-and-kill-you-violently look," At their heartbroken expressions she adds, "Besides, you aren't learning anything when you get me spouting off answers for you. A little suffering now will preclude a murder investigation after school's out," at their befuddled expressions she concludes, "After your parents shoot you for failing all of your finals!"

Despite her definite refusal, the pleading continues for the remainder of the walk to her house. However, when they arrive, there are a pair of unmarked black sedans parked in the driveway. A ball of ice seems to form in her stomach at the sight and she tenses as her eyes squint in sudden concentration. Her friends words trail off as she stops dead in the middle of the sidewalk. Aymee opens her mouth, but, "Wha-?" is all she manages to get out before Red cuts her off.

"Two black cars in my driveway. This is an abnormal occurrence. Something's up," Red says counting the points off on her fingers. "Go home. Assuming they aren't here to kidnap me or something I'll call you later."

Aymee and Kelli are dumbfounded by the sudden change in their friend's mood, but her last statement shakes them out of their paralysis. "If somebody's after you, you can't go in there!" Kelli says.

Red just shakes her head. "They wouldn't be parked out front if they were setting a trap. That's just obvious, and they should know that they can't force me to do something that I don't want to do. They must want something from me, so they won't harm me. I'll call you," she says as she starts, carefully, for the front door of her house putting everything else out of her mind and concentrating only on what's going on around her.

The blinds were open the way Marie always left them when they had company. No obvious damage around the door. No forced entry. _So far so good. _Door closed, not locked, good. No signs of a struggle. Entryway clear. Extra coats in the closet. _So, they were welcomed. _Smell. _Mulled cider? Someone they want to impress? _Conjecture, but valid conjecture nonetheless. With the realization that her foster parents aren't in danger, she relaxes.

As she walks into the sitting room, she looks straight at the "visitor's chairs" as her foster mom calls them and asks the two men in suits sitting there, "So, government or private sector, and what project do you want me for?" Their astonished looks are actually quite satisfying.

XXXXX

General Arvid Erlender was used to being in control. He liked being in control. When you were in control, you could guide the round pegs into the round holes, the square pegs into the square holes, and the funky star-shaped pegs into the funky star-shaped holes. Most of the time, you could even do while keeping the pegs totally oblivious to the fact that they were being moved. And with a single sentence a teenage girl has taken his entire plan, the pretty, prepared speech, the degree of intimidation inherent as a person categorizes their sins, wondering which was bad enough to come to their country's attention, even the slightly overstated cliché closing line always some variation of "Your country needs you!" turned it upside down, and shaken it soundly for good measure. He abruptly realizes that his jaw is hanging slightly slack and closes it, recalculating what to say on the fly. After a moment, he decides on the simple truth.

"A bit of both actually. I'm the governmental slash military liaison officer to Fjærinnlemmet, the Kingdom's number one R and D company, and we want your help with the Scandinavian Kingdom's G.U.N.D.A.M. development project, program Guilty Spark. Not as a member of the military," he continues quickly to reassure suddenly nervous parents, the girl herself is apparently unaffected, "but as a civilian consultant."

"I don't know anything about how to build a mobile suit," she says, not in protest. Her tone of voice makes it obvious that she s merely stating a fact.

"We're aware of that, and it isn't a problem," Arvid gives her a we-know-how-fast-you-learn look before moving on. "Now the monetary compensation for this endeavor is not inconsiderable, but somehow I doubt that the amount of money you could make from us will be a major motivating factor for you, so I'll throw you a different carrot. You will be one of three people working with our most experienced techs. You will be one of the first to do what we're doing, and perhaps even more tellingly, you might actually find it difficult." The general can tell that this point has made an impact. The girl's head turns to the side and she cocks an eyebrow in an "I'm listening" gesture. "You'll be a bit isolated, from everyone here so it'll be a lot like starting over again." Red looks at him with concern at this announcement. "The lab is near Visby on the island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea."

"When would I be able to come back?" Red asks. Arvid takes this as a good sign.

"You'd have holidays and certainly some vacation time. You should be able to make a trip home for a weekend every couple of months, twelve weeks at the outside. You'll be able to correspond freely with family and friends, so long as you don't mind your mail being read. It's not that we think you're a security risk, but we've got to be certain that no one accidentally lets something slip," This statement also earned him a nod and a response.

"I can't promise you anything right now. Give me a few hours to think." The general is tempted to continue, but, realizing the futility of such an action, forbears.

"Alright, here's a card," he says as he extends the piece of cardstock. "Call us when you decide," After a few minutes of pleasantries, he and his aide bow out, collecting the four man guard detail on the way. _All in all _Arvid thinks, _that didn't go badly._

XXXXX

Red was withdrawn for the rest of the night. She ate very little at the dinner table, and retired to bed far earlier than usual. But sleep eluded her, and for the first time, she cursed her quick neural process. She simply couldn't stop her mind's chaotic dance. Should she, or shouldn't she? There were so many reasons to go either way. She'd finally managed to surround herself with a group of friends, she was making a life for herself here. She loved her foster parents deeply and she was grateful to them for being there for her. But she wouldn't even be alive now if it wasn't for the neurologists. They had labored above and beyond the call of duty to save her when they didn't even know who she was. When they weren't even sure she was a citizen of the Kingdom. And that was the rub. They had helped her when they had no compelling reason to do so. She wasn't a nut when it came to honor, but she knew that she had an obligation to the people of the Kingdom. She would do what she could to help. She reached over to her nightstand and picked up the phone.

XXXXX

The general's cell phone rang, waking him from a deep sleep. Once, twice. On the third ring, he managed to get to it. "Hello?" he asked the person on the other end, preparing to rip their head off for anything less than a national disaster.

"General, I'm sorry, I didn't realize it had gotten so late," Or the girl, the girl could have interrupted him in a meeting with half the world's leaders and he'd have taken the call.

"Odd hours come with the job," he responds after clearing his throat. "I assume that you've decided on an answer?" he asked/stated, hoping for the sake of his country that it was the one he wanted.

"Yes, I have. I'll do it. I owe the Kingdom a debt, and I will repay it," she said firmly and it was all he could do not to shout in triumph.

"I'll get with my office in the morning. We'll send someone to pick you up in a few days." He paused for a minute. "I know you're giving up a lot to do this for us, and I will be the first, though not the last, to tell you, thanks," he says and hangs up before returning to bed to salvage what sleep he can before morning, a smile on his face.

XXXXX

The flight from had Oslo touched down on the runway at Visby at precisely 1534 hours military time. _I can't believe that it's been less than a week since that meeting. _The week had flown by with truly distressing speed. It seemed that she'd barely had time to say goodbye and pack before she was being whisked off to the airport. And now she was starting over. Again. It was not something she was looking forward to. Ordering her mind not to concentrate on the negatives, Red looks out the window beside her. _Pretty. Kinda similar to Oslo, but different too. Warmer. More animals. Greener. Milder climate? _The facility was really isolated. They'd gotten on the road by 1600 and according to the military escort they were making good time, but two hours was still a long time to spend in a vehicle, especially when the roads were . . . less than ideal. She really didn't want to ask, but the wait was driving her nuts. After a few more minutes, she succumbed to the temptation, "How much farther is it?"

The military driver just smiled. "Don't worry ma'am, the entrance is just ahead," Sure enough, when the car rounded the next bend there was a checkpoint set up across the road. After the guards had examined their credentials and checked them off on at least three separate lists they were passed through. Now the roads were much better, but they only had to drive for four or five more minutes before they stopped beside a rather small cluster of buildings. It really didn't look like a top secret R and D facility.

"Well ma'am welcome to the Granger Observation Facility, home of Project Gustavus, Project Archimedes, and Project Guilty Spark.

XXXXX

So waddaya think? Like? Dislike? Well click the little button beside the box that says review. Otherwise I'll send the squirrels after you.


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